Permutation-lock.



H. E. LE JEUNE.

PEBMUTATION LOCK.

APPLICATION mum MAY 8. 1912 Patented Aug. 26, 1913.

a sums-sum 1 12.34 5 a is" mvMo o JfELeJww H. E. LE JEUNE.

PERMUTATION LOCK.

APPLICATION nun) mu 8, 1912.

Patented Aug. 26, 1913.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 w. v a k a Iv /A.

a, i a i l a y I \1 &

H. E. LB JEUNE. PERMUTATION LOCK. APPLICATION FILED MAY 8, 1912 Patented Aug. 26, 1913.

K Mfi M W W w k wfim w xx w J m. /7 m ////A s c a 1 a r H o L M v M, j v A W /JWEn/I/J W 4 7m Mm M V 7 r 7 Mm 4 4 a q 5 3 g Q? 1 11; WV V V V/l/aMl/l/d 0 9 0, 1 w w w z 1% 2 4 0/ M i r fi 0 4V WWW M 7 @V HENRY E. LE JEUNE, OF SANTA MARIA, PORTO RICO.

PERMUTATION-LOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 26,1913.

Application filed May 8, 1912. Serial No. 695,912.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY E. Ln JEUNE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Santa Maria, in the Province of Vieques, Porto Rico, have invented new and useful Improvements in Permutation-Locks, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in permutation locks, and resides in the construction, combination and operative arrangement of parts set forth in the following description and falling within the scope of the appended claims.

The accompanying drawings illustrate a satisfactory reduction of my improvement to practice, but the important instrumentalities therein shown are necessarily susceptible to modifications, and so it is to be understood that the drawings are merely illustrative, and that such changes may be made therein as fall within the scope of the appended claims,

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of a door provided with my improved lock. Fig. 2 is a similar view, one of the side plates of the lock being removed. Fig. 3 is a central longitudinal sectional view with the tumblers in position. Fig. 4 is a similar view, the bolt being retracted. Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken through one of the tumbler compartments. Fig. (5 is a similar sectional view illustrating the manner in which the tumblers engage with the bolt when the key of the wrong combination has been actuated. Fig. 7 is a plan view of the bolt. Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the guard. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of one of the tumblers. Fig. 10 is a transverse sectional view illustrating the manner of retaining the bolt in an unlocked position. Fig. 11 is a front elevation of the keeper plate.

My improved lock comprises essentially a substantially rectangular frame or casing l, the same having open sides and being provided with a face plate 2 which extends both above and below the frame or casing The extending portions of the face plate 2 are provided with suitable openings for the reception of screw securing elements. ltv constructing the frame of my lock in this manner I obviate the necessity of inortising the door to which it is attached, as it is only necessary to provide a rectangular opening for the reception of the lock easing, the said opening being formed by sawing the door,

and thus saving a great amount of time in attaching the lock to the door. The casing or frame 1 is provided with a plurality of vertically arranged partitions 3, the space between the partitions providing compartments 4 which are adapted for the reception of gravity tumblers 5. The face plate 2 as well as the partitions 3 are provided with registering openings, the said openings being adapted to serve as a passage way for a locking bolt 6. This locking bolt has its inner end reduced as at 7, the said reduced portion extending through an opening 8 which is provided in the rear or connecting member of the frame.

The numeral 9 designates a helical spring which surrounds the reduced portion 7 of the bolt 6, and the said spring exerts a pressure against the shoulder provided be tween the said reduced portion 7 and the bolt proper to force the engaging portion of the bolt through the opening in the face plate and within an opening 9 provided in a keeper plate 10. The keeper plate, is of course, secured to the door casing and the said plate, above the substantially rectangular opening 9 is provided with a curved groove 11, the purpose of which will presently be set forth.

The locking bolt is provided upon one, or both of its faces with a stud 12, the said stud being preferably provided with a roller 13, the said roller is adapted to be contacted by the roll-back 14 which is secured upon the knob spindle 15. The spindle 15 is of course, provided with the ordinary operating knobs 16. The locking bolt 6 is pro- "ided upon its upper and outer face with a shoulder 17, and the numeral 18 designates a latch which is trunnioned at 19 between suitable ears 20 which are formed integral with the frame or casing. The latch has its lower face provided with an engaging tooth 21 and the said latch is normally forced toward and against the upper face of the locking bolt 6 through the medium of a spring 22. The latch bolt beyond its tooth 21 is formed with a rounded extension 23, and this extension is adapted to travel in the groove 11 of the keeper plate 10 when the door is swung to a closed position, and to thus raise the latch to bring its tooth 21 out of engagement with the shoulder 17 of the locking bolt 6 to permit of the expansion of the spring 9 to force the locking bolt 6 into the keeper 10, it being understood that the said tooth 21 will, through the medium of the spring 22 be thrown into engagement with the shoulder 17 when the bolt is retracted.

The locking bolt 6 is provided upon both its upper and its lower faces with a plurality of notches 24 and 25, the said notches being arranged directly opposite each other and being of a number corresponding with the number of compartments 4. The bolt is further provided adjacent its op osite ends and upon its top edge with shoul ers 26 and 27, the said shoulders being adapted to limit the sliding movement of the bolt in either direction. The tumblers 5 each comprise a flattened member of a thickness slightly less than the space between the partitions 3, and each of the said tumblers is formed adjacent its opposite transverse edges with offsets providing bits 28 and 2%). The bit 29 greater in area than the bit 28, so that when the tumblers are arranged in one position the bit 29 will engage within one of the notches 24 of the bolt 6, hut when reversed the bit 28 will be retained, in a manner pres ently to be described, above the said notch to permit of the free sliding of the bolt.

Arranged longitudinally of the casing or frame and passing through the partitions adjacent the opposite vertical edges thereof are rods 30 and 31. These rods are positioned adjacent the lower portion of the frame, and the said rods are adapted to serve as pivots for a plurality of substan tially L-shaped cam members 32 and 33. The upper portions of the L-shapcd cam members are normally sustained horizontally straight through the medium of the tumblers 5 resting thereon, and connected with the lower angular arm of each of the tumblers is a rod 34, each of the said rods projecting beyond the opposite faces of the casing or frame, and the said projecting portion is down-turned to provide a hook or finger hold These rods 34 provide what may be termed the keys for the lock and by reference to the figures of the drawings it will be noted that two of the cam members and 33 are arranged within each of the compartments so that the combination of the lock may be reached from either the inner or the outer face of the door.

The numerals 36 and 37 designate longitudinally extending rods or bars which are arranged upon the outer edges of the partitions and which are adapted to serve as a support for sustaining the keys in a substantially horizontal position or, in other words to prevent the downward swinging or falling of the keys from their pivotal connections with the cams 32 and 33, and the upward movement of the said keys is prevented by substantially similar rods 38 and 39.

The numerals 40 and 41 designate the face plates for the frame or casing. These plates are sufficient in size to cover the opening provided for the reception of the lock casing and the said plates are further provided with registering openings for the reception of securing elements, such as bolts 41 which are adapted to receive nuts 42, the said nuts being arranged upon the inner face of the door. The plates are also connected with the frame or easing through the medium of suitable screws 43, and the plates are further provided with elongated substantially rectangular openings 44 and 45 through which the curved or hooked ends of the keys 34. project.

The numerals 46 and 47 designate shields for the keys. These shields are connected with the plates 40 and 41 in any desired or preferred manner and the said shields are each provided with an open bottom whereby access of the hand of the operator may be had to operate the keys of the lock. The outer face member of the shield is provided with a plurality of indicating marks or figures 49, the said figures corresponding in number to the number of keys upon each side of the door and consequently to the number of tumblers of the lock. The indicating marks 49 are ada= ted to serve as a guide for the operator 0 the device, as by glancing at the said marks he will readily understand that the curved or hooked enzl of the keys to be operated upon, are arranged directly below the said marks, and thus trouble in "ascertaining the correct combination of keys to be operated upon to permit of the retraction of the locking bolt is obviated. By providing the tumblers 5 with the large and small bits, it will be noted that should an attempt be made to unlock a door by a false combination, even if the proper combination is included the larger bit 29 will be raised through the medium of the cams 32 and 33 and brought into engagement within the notches 25 upon the under face of the locking bolt. It will be further apparent that by removing the knob 16, upon the inner face of the door and by also removing the inner plate 40, the tumblers may be withdrawn from their compartments and the combination changed when desired, it being understood that changes in the combination are made by simply inverting the desired number of tumblers and replacing the said tumblers with in the compartments.

It is of course, to be understood that the space provided by each of the notches 24 and 25 is equal to the space between the partitions, but in the manufacture of the lock it has been found desirable to construct the partitions of some light thin material, and as a consequence when the bolt is retracted some of the notches may be forced within the adjacent compartment so that the tumblers will not be retained elevated when the bolt is retracted. To obviate this I provide a guard member 50, the same comprising a, substantially U-shaped element, formed upon its outer face with a plurality of notches 51, the same corresponding in number with the compartments and tumblers. The member 50 is adapted to be positioned upon the upper portion of the locking bolt 6, and the said member 50 adjacent its opposite transverse ends is pro vided with upstanding fingers 52 and 53. The finger 53, when the bolt is retracted is adapted to be .contacted by the shoulder 26, so that the solid portion of the guard, or that between the notches 51 will be forced between each of the partitions 3 to lie within each of the compartments 4, and thus provide a support for sustaining the tumblers 5 in a raised position. When a bolt is actuated by the spring 9, the finger 52 of the guard 50 Will be contacted by the shoulder 27 of the latch bolt to again bring its notched portions 51 between the partitions and to permit of the gravity tumblers 5 again engaging within the recesses 24: of the locking bolt.

In order to provide means whereby the locking bolt 6 may be held in a retracted position I have provided the plate 40 with an opening 54 and have also recessed the bolt 6 at the rear portion thereof, as desig' nated by the numeral 55. The opening 54 is adapted to register with the recess 55 when the bolt is retracted and the numerals 56 designates a locking pin which is adapted to be inserted through the opening 54 within the recess 55. This pin is retained upon the plate 410 by a flexible element such as a small chain 56.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the simplicity of the device, the method of operation as well as the principle of the construction, will, it is thought, be perfectly apparent to those skilled in the art to which such inventions appertain without further detailed description.

Having thus described the invention, What I claim is 1. A look including a notched locking bolt, a spring for moving the bolt in one direction, means for retracting the bolt against the tension of the spring, flattened gravity tumblers provided with oppositely disposed bits adapted to on age with the notches of the bolt, substantially L-shaped cam members pivotally arranged beneath the tumblers, keys for the cams and shields for the keys.

2. A look embodying a casing open at its sides, a plurality of partitions arranged transversely within the casing, a notched locking bolt passing through the partitions, a spring for forcing the locking bolt in one direction, means for retracting the bolt against the tension of the spring, means for limiting the travel of the bolt in either direction, the notches of the bolt being arranged between the partitions when the bolt is in a locked position, gravity tumblers having both their upper and lower edges provided with bits arranged between the partitions and adapted to engage with the notches of the bolt, cam members pivoted between the partitions and underlying the tumblers, key members comprising each a curved rod loosely connected with each of the tumblers, side plates for the casing, each of said side plates being provided with an elongated opening through which the curved ends of the keys project and each of the said plates being further provided with a downwardly curved shield which overlies the keys.

3. A look including a notched locking bolt, a spring for normally forcing the bolt in one direction, means or retracting the bolt against the tension of the spring, partitions arranged within the lock casing, a notched guard arranged upon the locking bolt and passing through the partitions, the notches of the bolt being arranged between the partitions when the bolt is in its locking position, gravity tumblers between the partitions and adapted to engage with the notches of the bolt, means for actuating the tumblers to bring the same out of engagement with the said notches and means for sliding the notched guard to bring its solid portions between the partitions to support the elevated tumblers after the tumblers have been operated upon and the .locking bolt retracted against the tension of its spring.

4. A permutation lock including a locking bolt having its edges provided with oppo sitely disposed notches, a spring for moving the bolt in one direction, means for retaining the bolt against the tension of the spring, reversible gravity tumblers for the bolt, said tumblers having one of their sides recessed to provide bits of unequal lengths, operating elements upon which the tumblers rest and adapted when actuated to move all of the tumblers equal distances, and certain of said tumblers resting upon the actuating means having their bits in engagement with the notches of the bolt, and certain other of said tumblers having their bits out of engagement with the bolts but adapted when actuated to be forced into engagement with said bolts.

5. A lock including a locking bolt having notched edges, means for longitudinally moving the bolt, flat reversible gravity tumblers provided with oppositely disposed bits of unequal lengths, the bits of certain of said tumblers adapted to engage within the top notches of the bolt, the bits of certain other of said tumblers being out of engagement with the notches of the bolt, but having their lower bits in alinement with the lower notches of the bolt, cam members upon which all of the bits rest, and operating keys for the cam members.

6. A lock including a locking bolt having notched edges, means for actuating the bolt, flat gravity tumblers provided with oppositely disposed bits of unequal lengths, a pair of L-shaped pivoted members having one of their arms providing a support for each of the tumblers, certain of said tumbl'ers having their bits received within the upper notches of the locking bolt, certain other tumblers having their bits out of engagement With the notches of the bolt, but their lower bits disposed in the path of the lower notches of the bolt and adapted to be engaged therewith when either of their supporting L-shaped members is swung upon its pivot, a key member pivoted to each of the L-shaped members and having their ends H fiopfes of this patent may he attained for five cents each, by addressing the provided with finger-holds which are disposed to the opposite faces of the lock.

7. A lock including a notched locking bolt, a spring for moving the bolt in one direc tion, means for retracting the bolt against the tension of the spring, and means for sustaining the bolt in its retracted position, of gravity tumblers including each a pair of spaced bits for the notches of the bolt, a pair of pivoted angular members arranged below each of the tumblers, and an oppositely disposed key for each of the angular mem bers whereby the said tumblers may be actuated by either of the angular members.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY E. LE JEUNE.

l/Vitnesses:

HAROLD M. STILEs, ALEX WETMORE.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

